April 2012 Newsletter

Celebrate Spring With
Luscious Lips!

This month's promotion is ideal for anyone wanting plumper, more sensuous lips and fewer lines above and below the lips. For $495, you will get 1 syringe of JUVÉDERM® or Restylane®, which can be used for lip augmentation. Or, our Toronto and Mississauga patients can use it above and below the lips to treat "smoker's lines." In addition, you'll receive a luxurious lip Trifoliant™ by SwissTEC™ to get rid of dry, chapped winter lips and a gorgeous Glo Liquid Lips lip gloss By GloMinerals™ – Free! See below for details.

Clinic News

This month, Dr. Weinberg ran an injection teaching session for plastic surgery residents and also organized an art education evening for them. It featured a tour of one of the most prestigious private collections of Canadian historical art. Dr. Weinberg strongly believes that plastic surgery requires an artistic eye and that training oneself visually is vital to achieving aesthetic results.

We also had a visit from our very own Erica. Many of you will know Erica as one of the smiling faces behind the front desk at the clinic. She has been away on maternity leave these past months, and she returned to see us with her beautiful baby boy! Speaking of beautiful, Erica herself is a shining example of how to take care of oneself after pregnancy. She looks fantastic!

Dr. Weinberg is also planning another much needed shipment of medical supplies to the Howard Hospital. He is in discussion with a large organization that is involved in supplying medication to the Third World. He hopes to partner with them in his future efforts in Africa.

Don't miss our new Facebook layout! Check it out at www.facebook.com/MississaugaCosmeticSurgery. Remember: "like" us on Facebook, and check back the second Tuesday of every month to see our "One Day Wonder" super-specials. Last month we offered more than $100 of free product with any injectable treatment purchased on March 15. Don't miss this month's special!

Topics in Cosmetic Medicine

Some Facts About Breast Lifts

For many women, pregnancy, breastfeeding and fluctuation in weight can take a toll on their breasts. Sometimes the issue is loss of breast volume, but often this is accompanied by drooping or sagging. This prompts many of our patients in Mississauga and Toronto to inquire about breast implants.

For small-breasted women who want a modest increase in size and who have minor sagging, breast implant surgery alone may be sufficient. However, when there is considerable drooping, breast augmentation alone would be a mistake. Appropriate treatment in this cause usually includes a breast lift. During breast lift surgery, excess loose skin, especially above the areola, is removed, and the areola and nipple are repositioned. There is a lot of advertising for so called "scarless" breast lifts. In reality, there is no such thing. It is possible, in some cases where drooping is mild, to achieve lifting with a periareolar scar – also called a "donut lift." In these cases, the incision is around the areola only. Therefore, the scar may be barely visible. However, it is important for Mississauga and Toronto breast lift patients to understand that only a couple of centimeters of lift can be achieved through such an incision. Attempts to achieve a larger lift can lead to complications.

In general, the degree of lift correlates with the size of the incision: The larger the scar, the greater the lift. Dr. Weinberg discourages his patients from compromising on the degree of lift and shape improvement by insisting on a small incision.

The classic breast lift incision was the "anchor," which went around the areola, vertically downward and then horizontally in the fold beneath the breast. However, this technique has been modified, and most women can now get the lift they require with a "lollipop" incision, which goes around the areola and then vertically downward. Though the idea of scarring may initially put some patients off, Dr. Weinberg uses modern suturing techniques and post-procedure care that can minimize the appearance of the scars. Many patients eventually wind up with a thin, barely visible, white line.

With any of the incisions mentioned above, patients can also have breast implants put in at the time of breast lift surgery. In general, overly large breast implants are not advisable with breast lifts, as they can cause complications, including compromising the blood supply to the nipple. As always with an augmentation, decisions need to be made about the placement of the breast implants. Toronto and Mississauga patients will need to discuss their goals with Dr. Weinberg. He will take many factors into account when recommending which implant, which incision and which implant placement would be best.

As mentioned in our last newsletter, INSPIRA® breast implants are now available here in Canada. Dr. Weinberg finds that they offer new options for women who are undergoing breast lifts and breast implant revision surgeries. The cohesiveness of the INSPIRA implants and the degree to which they are filled is thought to reduce the chances of rippling, thereby allowing placement of the breast implant above the chest wall muscle in more cases.

Experience with these implants in other countries before they were approved in Canada suggests that they have a reasonably low rate of capsular contracture, which may make them an attractive choice for women undergoing breast implant revision surgery.

Dr. Weinberg has been seeing an increased number of revision patients of late because of the PIP implant scare. PIP implants were French implants that were made with industrial-grade silicone. Dr. Weinberg wants to assure his Mississauga and Toronto patients that PIP implants were never used in Canada, but some women who had their implant surgery in other countries are opting to have PIP implants removed and replaced.

If you would like more information on breast lifts, or if you would like to book a consultation, contact us at 905-273-3045.